Topic: Investor

Three big-name mutual funds loaded up on Apple stock in the third quarter, while bailing out of the other big names in tech -- a move which is now setting up investors for short-term loss from shareholder sell-off.

It might sound bad for investors long on Apple that the company's stock price has dipped so dramatically once again on new reports that claim supply chain rumors are somehow, suddenly a good way to forecast iPhone sales after being completely wrong year after year. But that's wrong, and here's why.

Speculation of lower than expected iPhone demand continues to weigh on Apple stock prices as yet another component supplier, AMS AG, cuts revenue estimates for the current quarter. Three other key Apple suppliers reduced their respective forecasts this week.

Despite worries that iPhone sales have plateaued, legendary investor Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway increased its position in Apple by 522,802 shares during the third quarter of 2018, regulatory filings show.

UBS has cut its price target for Apple by $15 to $225 after revising its estimates, citing reported supply chain cuts and potentially tough market conditions for iPhone XR forecasts caused by the dollar appreciating against currencies in other key markets.

Analysts are continuing to weigh in on the future of Apple's growth following the company's most-recent quarterly report, with Guggenheim Securities claiming the push for higher iPhone ASPs isn't enough, while Loup Ventures insists investors should shift to thinking of "Apple as a Service" rather than a traditional hardware producer.

The company is making more cash than ever as a whole, but AppleInsider delves into the figures to see how much of that is through increased sales of hardware and how much is from Apple skimming more profit per device since Cook took over.

Finisar, the producer of laser scanners used to power Apple's Face ID system on its iPhones, has been acquired by optical system producer II-VI Incorporated, in a purchase said to be worth approximately $3.2 billion.

Katy Huberty from Morgan Stanley has taken a deep-dive into Apple's services market segment, and has taken a close look at the factors that will make Apple's once-overlooked aspect of its business a major factor for investors to consider now, and in the future.

Apple's stock price has taken a beating during early Monday trading, after analysts from two investment firms downgraded the iPhone producer following the latest quarterly results release, with analysts pessimistic on shipment figures and the lack of data going forward.

The quarter that saw the introduction of the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max is the last of Apple's fiscal year. At a time when the average selling price has become more important to analysts than ever for Apple's main revenue generator, it is worth looking at several years of previous data to see how the latest one stacks up.

Apple is continuing to lead the global tablet market, IDC analysts claim, but while the number of iPad sales declined in the most recent quarterly results, it isn't as much of a reduction compared to the overall marketplace's 8.6 percent decline in the third quarter.

Going forward, Apple will be increasingly reliant on a combination of driving up average selling prices for iPhones and fostering services revenue, several analysts contended in the wake of the company's Q4 results.

Excluding a one-time payment, Apple's services revenue rose 27 percent during the September quarter to $9.981 billion, aided by the company's usual suspects but in no small part by a sharp rise in Apple Pay transactions.

Apple on Thursday dropped a bombshell in announcing a major change in the way it reports quarterly earnings, saying it will no longer release iPhone, Mac and iPad sales numbers starting with the December period.

Apple set a new high for the September quarter that is continuing to be supported by a premium-priced iPhone lineup, as well as continued growth in the services segment. Following the publication of its fourth fiscal quarter 2018 results, the company provided additional detail on the record-breaking performance in an earnings conference call.